The last time Exeter City played Hull City was on January 11th, 2003 and the two clubs would soon find themselves travelling in opposite different directions in the footballing pyramid.
Exeter were relegated from the Football League on the final day of the campaign, whilst the Tigers - then managed by one-time Grecian Peter Taylor - would win back-to-back promotions in the following seasons as they embarked on a journey that would eventually take them all the way to the Premier League.
Now, in 2016, the Grecians face Hull tonight in the Capital One Cup - in what will be their third meeting with top-flight opposition in the space of 12 months after facing Sunderland in the same competition last season and after taking Liverpool to a replay in the FA Cup in January.
The Tigers have faced a summer of uncertainty over their ownership issues which saw Steve Bruce resign as manager, but Bruce's assistant Mike Phelan has stepped into the breach and has overseen two winning displays in the opening games of the Premier League season - against reigning champions Leicester City and Swansea City.
Meanwhile Paul Tisdale now embarking on his tenth campaign in charge at St James Park and will be looking to add a cup upset to his list of achievements as Grecians manager - something that he wasn't far away from achieving last January against Liverpool.
